


Like a Bird through Glass

by Pareidolia



Category: Tantei Gakuen Q | Detective Academy Q
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2008-12-24
Updated: 2008-12-24
Packaged: 2018-01-25 01:35:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,025
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1624553
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pareidolia/pseuds/Pareidolia
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kyuu, Ryuu, their past and their future.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Like a Bird through Glass

**Author's Note:**

> Much thanks to the requester for suggesting something I could run with, and much thanks to my friend for making sure it was in the right direction.  
> This mostly adheres to manga timeline and manga ending, but a lot of the events are comparable between all three versions of the series. There are spoilers for the end of the manga.
> 
> Written for Lucathia

 

 

Ryuu changes when it's over.

He's already really different from when they first met, that day ages ago on the boat to Kirisaki Island. Kinta once said he wouldn't know pretty if it slapped him across the face (he likes maid cafes, really, but the dresses are really nice and he can't help it if he doesn't remember the girls as well, even the one who got mad at him for asking what she wore under to make the skirt poof like that) but he'd still thought Ryuu was one of the prettiest boys or girls he'd ever seen. And he _is_ , but there was sometimes something _off_ back then, so it was a jagged sort of pretty, like one of those treasure chests found by pirates where "X" marks the spot. They open it up and it's shiny, beautiful and glitters under the light but when they stick their fingers in, they get trapped or cursed, or even turned into vicious, brain-eating zombies.

(Except Ryuu'd never turn him into a zombie. There are some girls at DDS who follow Ryuu around like _they_ might be zombies after a tasty brain but Megu said they aren't and they don't usually have shriveling skin and drying bones or attack people in dark corners so he should be okay.)

(But if he becomes a zombie, he'll try and not eat Ryuu's brain even though it must be really delicious. He's sure Ryuu wouldn't want be his friend anymore if he did.)

Ryuu started to become nicer after that. Well, not really nicer, but it became easier to see what he was feeling. To him, at least: he can usually tell what Ryuu's thinking (Kazuma has some strange name for it, but he never remembers what it is because it sounds like one of those disco dances in that movie Mom likes), but his smiles aren't always smiles and sometimes his face is so _empty_ it makes his stomach knot and he's just really, really _glad_ it doesn't happen so much anymore.

Ryuu had something heavy in his heart but they're friends and he always knew one day, Ryuu would confide in him. There was still a distance between them but it wasn't thick and dark and made of lead anymore. And when Ryuu smiled, soft and rare and precious, the distance was thin like clean spotless glass, clear enough for a bird to fly into.

(They've been running those commercials during _Miss Marple_ lately, and Mom always reminds him of that one time at the supermarket. They keep their glass really clean and how was he supposed to know?)

And then, the glass must have gone too because Ryuu _took a knife for him_ and it's not like him at all; Ryuu is smart, cautious, not impulsive and self-sacrificing. A good detective should follow his heart but knows to think with his mind, Dan-sensei once said, and he'd thought maybe that was why he and Ryuu work so well together: he's better at thinking with his heart and Ryuu's better at following his mind. But Ryuu's logic _couldn't_ have led him here -- in the middle of nowhere, his breathing so shallow and pained he was just hoping it wouldn't stop because he doesn't know what he would _do_ if Ryuu had _died_ \-- so it had to be his heart. 

And afterwards, when Ryuu moved in with them, he couldn't help but stare at the scar whenever he caught Ryuu coming out of the shower. (He'd gotten a wet towel or two in the face for it.) He thought it might be the only mark Ryuu had on him and he wondered about it because the few times Ryuu'd been pitted against Kinta in their self defense classes, Ryuu usually won or they fought to an impasse. But Kinta's fighting experience is in the scars on his skin and it's strange Ryuu's so unmarked, but still so _good_. (He'd have to look closer to be sure there aren't any other scars because Ryuu's skin is the smooth pale kind Mom's jealous of and it hides silvery scar lines really well but he'd probably get a lot more than a towel to the face if he asked to check.) It reminds him that Ryuu never talks about his past, even now with them under the same roof, and Ryuu acts like he doesn't understand family, just like he didn't understand friends before either.

(He thinks Ryuu might be an orphan or have amnesia sometimes. But he knows better than to push about those.)

(Or Ryuu might be a robot or an alien, but a robot would have to be better programmed and even an alien would understand friendship, right? And when Ryuu dozes in his room because they'd been talking too late, he lays a hand on his back and feels his heart beat slow and even and totally human, just in case.)

It all made sense later. Cerberus, practically King Hades' second-in-command back then (according to Hongou-sensei later), and Ryuu: they had _history_. And not just a short story, but one of those long, detailed novels with lots of twists (he likes TV better) because Cerberus dresses well, like he's rich and important, but treats Ryuu like he's royalty and it makes Ryuu bristle, fluff up and hiss like an angry cat.

(He thinks Ryuu would be one of those sleek cats with soft, shiny fur that look more like little panthers, but when he gets angry and tosses his head in that way, he thinks Ryuu could be one of those spoiled, furry cats that _glare_ too.)

But now he knew, and everything that was so strange about Ryuu suddenly fit into place and the sick feeling where the answer is one he doesn't like must have been on his face after they argued because he could see the worry hit Ryuu: Ryuu _knew_ something was wrong, and he ran. He remembers the panic on Ryuu's face and it reminded him of something broken open and raw and he thought maybe he should give him some time because he felt sick himself but Ryuu's so proud and ashamed and he could just see him never coming back. He _had_ to follow, he had to _confront_ him.

And Ryuu just _broke_.

(But he knew he'd be able to put him back together because Ryuu likes him, he _trusts_ him, and even if no one else does, Kyuu trusts him up to the very end too.)

Ryuu's been carrying so much weight on his shoulders: he is the heir of DDS's greatest enemy, brought up as a prince to his grandfather's throne and Pluto has been responsible for more deaths than even Hongou-sensei has tracked, their hands reaching into so many of even Q class's cases. Those are usually their most awful ones, because Pluto's clients are wronged and desperate and it's _horrible_ that Pluto makes them die too. And Ryuu is Ryuu, carrying the guilt for every death like he did it himself.

But now, it's over and he knows the guilt will fade with time and it really doesn't explain why Ryuu's been so quiet and looks as haggard as he does.

King Hades is dead and Dan-sensei says Pluto will crumble without him because their heir is gone too. Ryuu will never take that throne, never _have_ to, and Pluto will disappear, leaving only that tattoo on him.

(It's a really interesting tattoo, actually, because it's there sometimes but usually not and after the tenth time Ryuu had caught him staring at the back of his neck at night -- only Ryuu's pajamas have a big enough collar to maybe see it -- Ryuu had just frowned at him and explained the ink is pressure sensitive and shower pressure is usually enough to make it visible. He still puts concealer on it just in case. And no, he can't touch it.)

(But he still wonders how long it'd take to show up if he prodded it.)

It's only a few weeks after they found his father too. He's alive, after Ryuu'd thought he was dead for _years_ and he's still in the hospital but they expect him to make a full recovery, even if he'll never walk again. But Ryuu was happy, even after hearing that, and his father was just happy to see his son again.

So it doesn't make sense. But they're friends now, best friends, so he doesn't hesitate to sneak into Ryuu's bedroom when he leaves the hospital a little bit earlier than Ryuu does.

(Ryuu's father is a really nice man, warm and smart and he sometimes wonders if that's what Ryuu would have been like if Hades had never taken him.)

The room isn't pristinely neat, but it's obvious Ryuu's made an effort and Mom does the rest, he guesses. She really loves Ryuu, even if she likes teasing him sometimes. So when he searches, he's a little more careful not to disturb anything.

It really doesn't take a lot of effort to find it. They're stashed away in the nightstand: newspapers with apartment ads circled, a book with some long strings of numbers that could be anything from international phone numbers to bank accounts, and a cookbook or two.

Ryuu's planning to move out. 

It makes sense that he would: he probably wouldn't want to live here with his dad. They just have one spare bedroom and the house is too narrow for a wheelchair too, even the first floor. And Ryuu always feels like he's imposing, and his dad would probably feel the same way.

(Maybe Mom would agree to let Ryuu's dad live with them?)

But if he's moving out, he wonders how it'll work.

Ryuu's not as good as he is at everything else when it comes to household things. The first night he came here, the bathroom was flooded because he didn't realize the shower curtain needed to go in the tub. And he still forgets sometimes even now. 

And he's hopeless at cooking anything that's not ramen. He helps Mom in the kitchen sometimes, but it's pretty limited to cutting vegetables very precisely. He hasn't forgiven himself for burning Mom's birthday dinner yet. 

(They ended up ordering out and Mom knew what happened when she came home anyway since they weren't as good at cleaning as they should have been.)

And he's neat, but his surroundings aren't always. When he's busy, his room becomes a mess because he doesn't think about anything _but_ the case. They're really alike that way, much to Mom's annoyance.

And--

 _That_ has to be why Ryuu's so worried. He lived with King Hades from childhood, where he was waited on like royalty. And even when he came here, he had that lady to attend him: Miss Yurie. And then he lived here with him and Mom and Mom takes care of both of them.

He never learned to live like everyone else does. And if it's just him and his dad, he'll have to.

But like always, Ryuu's forgetting the obvious thing: he'll have lots of help. Q Class is like family, and they'll all pitch in: Kinta knows all about living alone, Megu can help cook, and maybe Kazuma can figure out how to extend the street to fit a wheelchair-friendly house.

And Mom won't really abandon them either. She'll probably be visiting Ryuu every single day. (And guilt Ryuu for leaving so much he _has_ to come over for dinner.) Maybe she and Ryuu's dad will really hit it off too.

He replaces the items in the drawer. He doesn't like the idea of Ryuu moving out, but he guesses they don't _have_ to live together to be so close.

(But then who'll he brainstorm with when they have one of those really hard cases?)

He'll talk to Ryuu about it tonight. Ryuu's not alone anymore: they've been through everything together and even if all those things are done and some things need to change, he's still Kyuu and Ryuu's still Ryuu and they'll solve this together.

They always do.

(And they'll probably end up under one roof again.)

 


End file.
